


In the Background

by deinde_prandium



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Fluff, extras!Everlark, movie!Everlark
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-05-15
Updated: 2015-05-15
Packaged: 2018-03-30 15:12:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,122
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3941488
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deinde_prandium/pseuds/deinde_prandium
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>"But every so often he’ll touch her hand, or brush a wisp of hair out of her face, or something equally intimate that makes her feel like her heart is going to stop, and she has to to remind herself of where she is.</p><p>Either this Peeta guy is flirting with her, or he’s too good of an actor to be doing BG gigs."</p><p>Katniss and Peeta are movie extras who meet on a film set. Based on a tumblr prompt.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In the Background

**Author's Note:**

> Originally posted on my shiny new(ish) tumblr account, I've decided to archive here as well. Hope you like it.
> 
> As always, I own nothing, but I borrow with love. Many thanks to dealan for pre-reading/betaing.

“And I told him, ’ _Excuse_ me, but according to union rules I am entitled to additional compensation for wearing my beard.’ I mean, I was going to shave after Movember, but…”

Katniss rolls her eyes as she turns up the volume on her phone, hoping the sounds of Ben Folds will drown out the idiocy of the chatter around her. If there is one thing she hates about this job, it’s having to listen to self-important professional extras talk shop for hours on end while they’re stuck in BG holding. Unlike most of the people in the holding room, she doesn’t consider herself to be an actor. The only reason she’d gotten into BG work in the first place was because of Gale, who worked sound for various productions around the city.

 _“It’s a pretty sweet deal, Catnip,”_ he had said. _“I’ve seen how these background gigs work. Half the time you just sit around doing nothing, waiting to get picked to appear in a scene. It’s easy money, and with all the projects coming here to shoot, they need more people. Plus, they’ll feed you.”_ Despite her reluctance, the idea of free food and a chance to get paid to sit and do homework did sound appealing. Gale was right, too - since signing up with a background performers casting agency last year, she’d already landed enough jobs to cover whatever costs her student loans couldn’t. She even had a union card.

But that didn’t make her an actor - just “Girl with Braid #2” on the set of whatever random film she’d been sent to work on today.

The room suddenly quiets when a PA with a douchey-looking hipster beard and a walkie-talkie marches into the room. “Okay, I need ‘Annoyed Waiter,’ 'Girl with Braid #2,’ 'Blond Guy #3,’ 'Tired Parents 1 and 2,’ and 'Red-Haired Kid’ to come with me,” he drones uninterestedly, only looking up from the clipboard in his hands to make sure he has the right number of people. Katniss quickly turns off her phone, slipping it into her pocket as she joins the group of selected extras.

The PA leads them through a maze of hallways from BG holding to set, which has been transformed into a restaurant. Although she’s not much of a film buff, she can’t help but be impressed with the way the soundstage has been transformed. She’s also pleasantly surprised to see Gale, who waves at her. He and the rest of the sound crew appear to be standing around and cracking jokes with some of the principal cast members. That one guy looks familiar, she thinks. She makes a mental note to ask Gale later.

The wave of a hand in front of her startles her back into focus. “Um, hi? Sorry, the AD just told us he wants us to sit at that table over there.” Katniss turns to face the person speaking to her, only to be confronted with the most startlingly attractive man she has ever seen in her life. She is awestruck for a moment as she takes in the sight. Clear blue eyes. Perfectly messy blond waves. Lips curved in a crooked smile as they move. It looks like he’s saying -

“Peeta. I’m Peeta,” he says, extending a hand to shake hers. “Blond Guy #3, officially, but my real name is Peeta. And you are…?”

Katniss blinks, shaking herself from her reverie for a second time. “Sorry, I’m Katniss. Girl with Braid #2,” she adds, reaching to play with her braid for emphasis. Don’t be such an idiot, she admonishes herself. “I’m sorry, I guess I got distracted for a second.”

Peeta’s smile doesn’t waver. “No problem. Though it looks like that guy over here was trying to get your attention. Someone you know? Boyfriend, maybe?”

“Who? Oh, yeah, that’s Gale. Uh, my friend Gale. I mean, we’re just friends.” She smacks herself internally for volunteering that last bit of information. “He’s part of the crew.”

“That’s cool,” Peeta replies. “Um, so, shall we?” He gestures to the table.

“Right, yes, of course,” Katniss answers, annoyed at herself for sounding so flustered. Just who is this guy, anyway?

For his part, Peeta seems unperturbed, offering her his arm and escorting her to the table. “I hope you don’t mind me doing this,” he says as he pulls the chair out for her, “but the AD said we’re supposed to pretend we’re on a date, so I figure it might help me get into character.”

Katniss smirks. “You realize we’re just background, right? Even if we make it on screen, we’ll probably be blurred out.”

“All the same, it never hurts to be genuine.”

“As genuine as one can be when pretending to be on a date,” she counters.

“Touché,” he concedes. “But remember, we’re supposed to be in love. So feel free to kiss me anytime you feel like it,” he says with a wink.

The director calls “Action!” before Katniss has a chance to retort.

\---

Right around the 7th take, Katniss starts to wonder if this might not actually be a pretend date anymore.

The initial awkwardness notwithstanding, it’s been remarkably easy for Katniss to play along with Peeta’s method. Even though she still thinks he’s taking his role as “Blond Guy #3” a bit too seriously, quiet conversation flows naturally between them. At first, it’s just small talk in between takes, but seated as close together as they are at their tiny bistro table, it’s not difficult to continue talking even when the cameras are rolling. Heads bowed together, they speak in barely audible tones, discussing their likes and dislikes, trading horror stories from previous productions, and even talking about what they do when they’re not on set. She learns about his two brothers, and surprises herself with how willingly she opens up about Prim.

Now that she thinks of it, she’s probably shared more about herself on this fake date with Peeta than she has on her past five real dates. Combined.

But every so often he’ll touch her hand, or brush a wisp of hair out of her face, or something equally intimate that makes her feel like her heart is going to stop, and she has to to remind herself of where she is.

Either this Peeta guy is flirting with her, or he’s too good of an actor to be doing BG gigs.

“So I think I’ve come up with a back story for us,” he murmurs. He reaches for her hand and looks intently into her eyes. “I’ve been in love with you since the moment I first saw you.”

Katniss swallows hard. Damn, this guy is good. “Oh?” she croaks out. “And when was that?”

“When we were in kindergarten,” he replies seriously, never taking his eyes from hers. “I heard you sing in music assembly, and from that moment on I was a total goner. but you didn’t know who I was until we were in high school, when we were paired up for a school project. We’ve been inseparable ever since.”

Surprised at how disappointed she is to hear a made up story - even if she knows deep down that he’s just playing up their romance for the cameras - she deflects with an eye roll. “I don’t know,” she teases. “That sounds a little too cliché for my taste.”

“You think you can do better?” he challenges, bringing her hand to his lips and brushing her fingertips with a light kiss.

Katniss suppresses a shudder. Acting. He’s acting, she reminds herself. “I, uh, I didn’t say that,” she whispers. “But if you and I are supposed to be high school sweethearts and all that, it doesn’t really make sense that we’re having what strikes me as more of a first date.”

“Fair enough. Let’s brainstorm then.”

The mood shifts as they spend the next few minutes creating scenario after scenario, drawing on every cheesy trope they can think of. By the time Peeta’s done spinning a ridiculous tale about how their respective characters are rival food critics who fall for each other after being forced to share a table, it’s all Katniss can do to keep from giggling.

And Katniss isn’t the type to giggle.

Nonetheless, when the director screams “Cut!” for the umpteenth time, she dissolves into a quiet fit of laughter as she can manage. Peeta joins in, earning them dirty looks from the other BG performers on set.

Their laughter gradually dies down, giving way to timid smiles exchanged in silence. God, this guy is cute, Katniss thinks. She brushes off the thought, reminding herself - once again - that he’s just pretending, playing a role for a movie. She sneaks another glance at Peeta, who wears an uncharacteristically pensive expression as he traces patterns on the white tablecloth with his finger.

His jaw set determinedly, Peeta breaks the silence before things get too awkward. “Okay, I think I’ve figured out our back story,” he says. “We’re extras that hit it off after meeting on a film set.”

“How meta,” Katniss smirks.

“You didn’t let me finish. I mean, Blond Guy #3 and I are practically the same person,” Peeta jokes.

“Okay then, let’s have it,” she tells him.

“Way to put the pressure on, Katniss.” She just grins in response.

Peeta takes a deep breath. “Anyway, so let’s say that Blond Guy #3 decides to attend an extras casting call on a dare from his friend. He really doesn’t have any intention of starting some film career or anything like that, but he ends up getting cast and he thinks, why the hell not. So he shows up on his very first - and likely last - film set, and within five minutes he’s spotted this beautiful girl sitting at a table reading a book. It’s…wait for it…” he says, pausing for dramatic effect, “…Girl with Braid #2.” Katniss rolls her eyes, but can’t help the tinge of pink that appears on her cheeks.

The director calls “Action!” once more. Peeta lowers his voice, but continues his story. “So, the girl with the braid. Like I was saying, she’s beautiful. But unlike everyone around her, she seems to have no interest in interacting with anyone in the BG holding room. Everything about her body language, from the way she sits to the constant adjusting of her earbuds to block out the noise around her, just screams 'stay away from me unless I’m needed on set.’ But what she doesn’t seem to realize is that, no matter how much she tries to fade into the background, she still manages to stand out. She just has that kind of effect on people.”

Katniss is mesmerized by the details in the story he is weaving. His descriptions of her character always seem to liken her to some kind of enigmatic earth goddess, but this time feels different. “So is that when they meet?” she asks haltingly. “Does Blond Guy #3 come in and sweep her off her feet?”

Peeta hesitates. “Actually, no,” he admits. “In fact, he is so intimidated by her that he doesn’t approach her at all…which, if you ask me, was a pretty stupid move, but like I said, this girl totally intimidated him.”

She cocks an eyebrow at him, confused. That’s not the direction she saw this going in. “So what happened?”

“Well, despite his intention not to do more than that one gig, Blond Guy #3 ends up spending the rest of his summer doing BG work. He actually finds that he enjoys it, but if he’s totally honest, the only real reason he’s keeps doing it is because he wants another chance to approach that girl he saw on that first day.”

“That doesn’t make him sound like a creepy stalker at all,” Katniss deadpans.

He blushes. “I know, right? Blond Guy #3 is kind of an idiot. In his defense, though, it’s not like he keeps seeing her at different sets, even though they later discover that they’ve worked on a lot of the same productions. The timing just never worked out, I guess; he would get called to work on one day, and she would get called to work on another, and for a time it seemed that they would never cross paths again.”

Peeta swallows hard, suddenly anxious. He looks down at their joined hands. Katniss has to strain to hear what he says next. “But then he gets his chance when they’re paired together for a scene in a restaurant.”

Katniss can’t help but suck in a breath at this revelation. Is he saying…?

Avoiding her gaze, Peeta barrels on. “Finally, Blond Guy #3 has a chance to make his move. He has absolutely no clue where to begin, because even though he’s had this weird crush on her for the past two months, he doesn’t know a thing about her. But then they get to talking…and the more he learns about her, the more he wants to know. He’s never felt like this about anyone before, and it kind of freaks him out. And he has a feeling that she might freak out too if he tells her the truth. But he knows that he’d better say something, anything, before they wrap for the day, or he may never get another shot.”

She should be furious at him for this. Under normal circumstances she would probably run away, but since the sneaky bastard has dropped this bomb on her while the cameras are rolling, there’s no way to escape. Technically, she has no choice but to continue to play the role of star-crossed lover.

But when he peeks up at her through a fringe of golden lashes, smiling nervously as if bracing for rejection, Katniss realizes she’s not furious at all. Embarrassed? A little. Overwhelmed? Definitely. But not mad.

After what feels like an eternity, she finally responds. “So then what?”

“Well, for starters, he hopes that his confession hasn’t completely scared Girl with Braid #2 off, because even though they’ve known each other for less than a day, he really does like her…and he’s kicking himself for wasting so much time by not having the courage to talk to her months ago.”

Katniss smiles shyly at him. “If it makes you feel any better, Girl with Braid #2 is pretty intimidated by Blond Guy #3 too. If he had tried to talk to her before, she probably would have shut him down. She’s kind of awkward like that.”

Peeta leans in closer. “I guess they make quite a pair, then, huh?” he asks. His voice is low, laced with vulnerability and something else Katniss can’t quite identify.

She finds herself leaning in as well. “I guess they do,” she whispers.

Their eyes lock, and in that moment the world around them disappears. Katniss doesn’t miss how Peeta’s gaze flits briefly to her lips and back up again, silently asking permission. She can feel her heart thudding in her chest as she nods almost imperceptibly in assent. Her eyes flutter shut and she takes in the scent of cinnamon and dill emanating from him. His mouth hovers over hers as they lean in closer and closer…

Their lips have barely touched when a voice bellows out, shattering the moment.

“Oh for fuck’s sake, cut! Cut, cut, cut!”

Katniss and Peeta freeze, their fingers still interwoven. Her eyes widen as the director - a paunchy, middle aged man who reeks of booze - marches right over to their table.

“Do you see these two?” he yells, gesticulating wildly in their direction. “Do you? Because they’re all I’ve managed to watch for past ten fucking minutes. They only met today and already I’m seeing more chemistry between them than I’ve seen from you two in the past three days. You’re supposed to be fifteen seconds away from eloping, or fucking, or whatever, I don’t care. But I want to see that kind of passion. So get it the fuck together!”

He whirls around to face Katniss and Peeta directly. “And you! Tone it the fuck down. This is a film set, not an audition, so stop trying to upstage my principals. If I didn’t need you for continuity I would have kicked both of your asses out already.”

The director takes a deep breath as if preparing himself to round on them again, when a brightly-dressed woman with incredibly big hair steps in. “Haymitch?”

“WHAT?”

The woman glares at him, and Haymitch miraculously backs down. Must be one of the producers, Katniss thinks. “According to the schedule,” the woman says, “it’s time for lunch.”

“May as well,” he concedes. “God knows I need a drink,” he mutters under his breath, just loud enough for Katniss to hear. “All right, lunch, everybody! We’ll pick this up in an hour, and I swear to God, if you don’t have your shit together by then…” Haymitch doesn’t even bother to finish his thought, simply marching off set with an army of producers and assistants trailing behind him.

When Haymitch is out of sight, Peeta lets out a breath. “Wow. That…was terrifying.”

Katniss smirks. “You mean, you’re not fangirling over the fact that the director actually spoke to us?”

“Award-winning director,” Peeta corrects. “And more like screamed at us.” “

You’d be surprised. If the others in BG holding find out, they’ll be super jealous. Trust me,” she tells him.

“I don’t care about that. Besides, they’re more likely to be jealous of the fact that I got to kiss you on camera,” he teases.

Katniss blushes, but teases right back. “You call that a kiss?”

Peeta chuckles, his own cheeks reddening as well. “Okay, you got me.” His expression shifts into something more serious. “But just so you know, I won’t be doing it again.”

She furrows a brow, confused. “What do you mean?” she asks, hoping she doesn’t sound as disappointed as she suddenly feels. A niggling voice in the back of her head chides her for thinking this wasn’t all for the cameras after all.

“Well,” he says earnestly, “if I were to kiss you again - that is, if you’ll allow it - I wouldn’t want it to be for some movie. I’d want it to be for us. I’d want it to be real.”

A slow smiles spreads across her face. “I guess I can allow that,” she answers. “Eventually,” she adds as nonchalantly as possible. Of course, that all goes out the window when Peeta stands and offers her his hand, causing her stomach to flip.

“In that case, would you like to join me for lunch? I hear craft services is excellent this time of year,” he says with a grin.

Katniss takes his hand. “I’d love to.”

**Author's Note:**

> Feedback always appreciated!


End file.
